Holiday Magic

Christmas is definitely my favorite time year. Christmas itself is a magical time. The lights, the trees, the holiday baking, the ornaments, the presents and one of my favorite parts the church services and all the traditional Christmas songs. I love the crisp cold air at Christmas time and the fires, the cuddling, and the family time that comes with it. It's like no other time of year.  

 

Now that I have small children it's become even more enjoyable. They are beyond excited about Santa's arrival, the tree and they too enjoy the music (however, their favorite Christmas song at the moment is Alvin and the Chimpmunks "Christmas Don't Be Late." - the orignal version).

 

So how exciting is it that I, a photography student, get to take some photos for a class project at Christmas? Pretty exciting if you ask me!

 

 My classes are so much fun. I love my instructors, my classmates, all the different software, the techniques I'm learning. I'm turning into a photography nerd I guess! Furthermore, I'm slowly building a customer base outside of my classes, and I've landed a job taking photos of newborn babies at the local hospitals. I was talking with a friend of mine yesterday and I made mention of the fact that there is no greater feeling in this world than to see a lifelong dream slowly become a reality.

 

Below are 2 of my favorite shots I've taken with bokeh that capture a little of what Christmas is to me. Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

All the Things I'm Thankful For

I have so many things that I am thankful for I decided to just put them in a numbered list. So here they are:

 

1. First and foremost I'm thankful to have Christ in my life. I have been blessed in so many ways. I'm so grateful to him for all he's blessed me with!

2. I am thankful for my family (blood, non-blood and all). I've been blessed with so many wonderful people in my life. I love each and everyone of you more than you could ever imagine.

3. Thankful for my church family.

4. My husband - I have a great husband. He's been so supportive in me following my dream and returning to school to pursue photography.

5. The 3 sweet little faces you see below. They put a smile on my face every single day, and they can make a horrible day turn into the best day.

6. My friends old & new.

7. For fresh from the garden vegetables from a friend this year that have helped to make my Turkey Day side dishes.

8. For my yard man - yes, he deserves to get some praise because he kept my grass looking great all summer long!

9. For my husband's job and my upcoming job - jobs are so hard to come by and so many people are being laid off these days we are blessed to have the jobs we have!

10. For my kitty cat - he's always there when I need a friend ;)

11. For a roof over my head, clothes on my back, and food in my tummy.

 

I hope everyone has the best Thanksgiving ever.

 

Below are my latest photos of my sweet babies. Memphis was feeling under the weather so we will have to try again with him soon.

 

 

 

Marriage Retreat

Okay, so for years anytime someone told me they were going on a "marriage retreat," I thought two things. 1.)They were super old and 2.) They must have major major issues within their marriage. So I found it to be somewhat funny when I caught myself on the way towards Orange Beach, AL this weekend for nothing else but a marriage retreat.

First, let me clarify that there are no issues within my marriage. I have an incredible husband who would do anything for me and I too would do anything for him.

We decided to go on this trip because we knew it could help us grow our marriage and become stronger.

We had such a great time and gained so much from it. We laughed for hours on end, saw a movie, did some shopping, spent tons of time on the beach, hung out with some other super nice couples, worshiped our wonderful God, and so many more things. It was a wonderful trip. I've attached some of my favorite shots below.

Hope everyone has a wonderful week.

April

This is me and my supercool 3D movie glasses ;)

Pictures of the week

I meant to do this last week but I got sidetracked with sick kids, sick husband, etc. Each week I'm going to attempt to post my favorite shots of the week. These were some of the ones I took last week. I also vow to make this blog more than just a place to see my pics. I will try to post stories behind some of the pictures along the way too!

 

Have a great week and enjoy these pics ;)

 

Fall Sunrise

These photos were taken just minutes from my house at a local lake I live nearby. Unfortunately the quality is really really crappy because I only had my cellphone to take them with. I plan on having my camera in hand in the morning however in hopes to capture this gorgeous fall sunrise again in better quality! Isn't it just beautiful?